Legal Rules Marketers Need to Know

New regulations and laws are being put in place to protect the privacy and rights of individuals when they interact with brands. We think these rules are a positive step, allowing marketers continue to produce good work in a way that puts people first, no matter the marketing strategy. For marketers, we must be aware of these rules from a legal standpoint to protect our business. Some of these regulations have already been implemented, and some are coming soon. Here’s what you need to know:

Need to Know: Legal Rules for Marketers

General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR)

The most recent legal rule that has come into play for marketers everywhere is the General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR), which takes effect on May 25, 2018. According to Hubspot, just 36% of marketers have heard of GDPR, while 15% of companies have done nothing, and are at risk of non-compliance. This new regulation will have a huge impact on companies who collect, use and store personal information on EU citizens. So how do you make sure that you are compliant with this new regulation? There are two important pieces of information you should know.

  1. Even if you are not in the EU, if you collect or store information on EU citizens, the GDPR will apply to you.
  2. The penalty for failing to comply with GDPR is fines up to €20 million or 4% of your company’s global annual revenue.

Because fresh produce is an international trade (we come from all around the world!), you as a marketer are most likely directly affected. There is a lot to digest when it comes to GDPR, but our wonderful friends over at Hubspot created a web page dedicated to housing all the information you need to know and learn about the GDPR, which you can start implementing in your organization right away.

Canadian Anti-Spam Law (CASL)

Although this rule is suspended indefinitely, it is important that as a marketer, you read up and prepare for when this law is resurfaced. We wrote about the Canadian Anti-Spam Law back in July, but here is a quick rundown of what you need to know.

CASL applies to all electronic messages and requires businesses sending electronic messages to Canadians to receive “explicit consent” from the recipients before sending the message. Explicit consent requires marketers to be much more specific and clear that people are subscribing or consenting to receive emails from your company.

To obtain this consent, you must clearly identify your organization and include contact information for your company. Make sure to provide an unsubscribe option so the contact can opt-out of any and all communications with your company at any time. Finally, clearly state that the subscriber is consenting to receive emails from your company and what types of emails they can expect to receive.

Facebook and Twitter Disclaimers

Social media, although a great place for brands to interact with consumers on a more personal level, also requires some boundaries when promoting and collecting information to use from individuals. Facebook and Twitter have recently put out disclaimers to help protect the everyday consumer.

When running a promotion/sweepstakes/contest on Facebook and/or Instagram, Facebook requires that you include a note stating that the promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. Brands can do this by putting a quick call out with this statement at the bottom of their posts. Check out the entire list of Facebook Pages terms here.

Although Twitter does not require you to place a disclaimer that the promotion is not affiliated with them (like Instagram and Facebook require), it does require you to state that anyone entering through multiple accounts is ineligible.

These laws and regulations are raising the bar for marketers everywhere. Not only do they help protect the individual, but also allow us as marketers to better serve our audiences through every marketing strategy we implement. If you have questions or if you’re concerned about becoming compliant, we recommend seeking professional legal advice.

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